Confections and Confessions
by skyranger48
Summary: What happens when a not-so-ordinary thief and a not-so-ordinary merchant get thrown into a not-so-ordinary world? Gaius x Anna.
1. We're Going to the Outrealms

It was a clear, sunny day in Ylisstol. The markets were as busy as ever. An orange-haired young man with a messy bowl cut strolled through the crowd. He was eating a lollipop, the stick popping out of his mouth. He wore light mail under a black cloak. His name was Gaius, a thief. One who had an obsession with sugary treats. Turning to a different corner of the market, he approached a stall.

"G'day, my man," he casually greeted the shopkeeper, placing his arm on the counter. The scrawny man behind the counter grumbled.

"What do you want, Gaius?"

"I'm sure you know what I want, old man."

The man sighed at the remark, and opened a little safe. He took out a small brown string bag and tossed it at the thief. Gaius opened it and took a whiff.

"Hmm. High-grade caramel crunchy bits, from the top sweets manufacturer in the northwest. Am I right?"

"Not something you'd get your paws on everyday, sugar boy."

Gaius slipped the sack into a hidden pocket. He keeps all kinds of sugary treats hidden in his clothing.

"Sweet. How much?"

"I'm not asking you for gold. I want you to do me an errand."

Gaius lifted his left eyebrow.

"See, I made a deal with someone. They requested for a certain herb only found in the Outrealms. Now I don't want to turn them down, but I can't go there myself. That's where you come in, my friend."

"Hmm, fine by me."

The man handed Gaius a piece of paper pertaining information about the herb. Taking it from his hands, Gaius skimmed through it. "Forestrealm...under a tree...mm...long leaves...all right." He stuffed the paper into one of his pockets, realizing something crushing underneath it.

"Aww man, my chocolate chip cookie," he pouted. The shopkeeper rolled his eyes, as the thief took out the remaining crumbs and threw them away.

"So you understand, right?"

"Yep."

"Good. Now off you go." The old man shooed Gaius away with a hand gesture and returned to his wares. The thief walked away, towards the market exit.

"The Outrealm... huh..." Gaius murmured as he looked for a carriage.

Gaius is a freelance thief. He keeps his profile as a thief low, and instead sides as a craft merchant, so his reputation with the market is quite reasonable. His skills being embroidery and craftsmanship, among others. He keeps a sword with him at all times, but his blade proficiency doesn't match those of mercenaries.

Climbing onto the carriage he manage to find, he told the coachman his destination was the Outrealm gate. The mustached man sitting on the horse nodded, and got his horse to start moving. Gaius sat down on one side of the wooden cart. The ground was unstable, so it kept vibrating, making Gaius uncomfortable. Biting the already small lollipop in his mouth, it cracked. He swallowed it and spat the stick out onto the ground outside the cart. Reaching into the left side of his cloak, he took out a piece of mint flavored hard candy and popped it in his mouth.

After about half an hour, the carriage stopped in front of a large gate on the ocean side. It stood out like a sore thumb. Gaius wasn't even sure how it got there in the first place. No one did. There was no such construction project. It just popped up one day, and no one knows why.

Jumping off the carriage, Gaius reached into his pockets again. Taking out a small blue pouch, he handed it to the coachman. "That's worth a lot more than you think it would," Gaius said before walking away. The man shrugged again, and left.

Approaching the Outrealm gate, he could see someone sitting on a rock nearby.

"Oh, are you here to use the gate?" A red-haired woman who looked to be a merchant stood up from the stone and walked over to Gaius. She had the trademark pose of resting her pointer finger on her chin. Her name was Anna, the Secret Seller. She travels around the world buying and selling extravagant merchandise. She also has many identical sisters. This Anna was only one of many. But this Anna works as a gatekeeper.

"Yep. I need to go to the Forestrealm. Think you can help me out, Red?"

"Mmhh. Yeah, sorry, buddy. The Outrealm Gate is kinda busted right now."

"Busted? What do you mean?"

"Well...to put it simply, it's kind of broken. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't."

Gaius didn't seem to care. He just continued to walk by.

"Hey! Are you not listening to me? I advise you not to go in there. It's unstable."

"Well fix it or something. I don't have all day."

"Uwah... You're an impatient one. Look, I'm not gonna be responsible for what happens to you, capice?"

Nodding, the young man walked up to the gate. Normally there would be a blue portal once a person gets near the gates, but there was none this time. Gaius even tried moving in and out of the gate. Nothing was happening.

"Hey, Red. What's up with the gate?"

"I told you. It's not working."

Anna walked towards Gaius, and stopped next to him. She gave him a gesture signalling him to go home, but the thief shook his head.

"I'm not going anywhere but the outrealms."

"Ugh. You're so persistent. I told you there's nothing I can—"

Suddenly the ground underneath them shook. Light flashed from the gate, and a pulse of energy formed. Swirling into a spiral, the light turned into the portal to the outrealm. But instead of normal blue light, this was deep red light.

"Sweet. It's working." Gaius took a step closer to the portal.

"Hey!" Anna exclaimed, grabbing his cloak. But Gaius' hand had already reached into the portal. The energy sucked the two into the portal, and disappeared with them.

* * *

**Author's note: [Nowi voice] So hey.**

**First off, this idea came from one of my friends. One time, they said, "Hey, why doesn't Gaius and Anna have a support. It could be like a merchant thing" or something to that effect. Personally, I think Gaius and Anna would make a cute couple. Too bad the game doesn't let you pair them.**

**So this is just an idea, if you people like it I might continue it. Just short chapters of random outrealm adventures, leading to a bit of romance and whatnot.**

**Interested? Please review.  
**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem **


	2. Trouble in the Outrealms

"Ugh..."

Feeling dizzy, Gaius raised his head. His vision was still blurry. As it began to focus, he looked around. He saw trees. Lots of them. The air felt arid, and Gaius could hear the buzzing sound of several cicadas. There was a faint sound of flowing water coming from somewhere. His whole body ached. It felt as if he was dragged across the ground.

Attempting to stand up from his face-down position, he placed both his palms flat on the ground, and gave pressure to them, like a push-up. Once his body was elevated, he quickly folded both legs with a little jump, and ended up in a crouching position. This method allowed for agile movement after being knocked face-down. With a leap similar to a frog, Gaius was back on his feet.

Still feeling lightheaded, he leaned on the nearest branch. The wood was dry. Holding his forehead, he took a few deep breaths. He reached into his cloak and took out a strawberry flavored lollipop, then popped it in his mouth. Moving the candy inside his mouth from one side to another, Gaius looked up.

"Ugh, where is this place?"

The canopy wasn't thick, with some trees being leafless, allowing the sun's rays to pierce through the foliage. Somehow, he ended up under a large tree, so at least he was in the shade for now. While thinking about several things, he noticed the sound of light breathing mixed within the insect cries. It came from nearby; from behind him. He peeked behind the tree curiously, and he saw the figure of a woman there. Leaning her back on the trunk, breathing slowly, eyes closed, sword on her lap.

Anna...

The girl looked just as exhausted as he was, even more maybe. The sleepy face and the trickle of drool on her chin made her look cute. Gaius decided not to disturb her, but as he turned away he felt something crawl on his arm. Shocked, he jumped back, cursing. The beetle-like insect that had been on his hand flew away with a heavy buzzing sound, waking Anna. Blinking a few times, she turned towards Gaius. After a while of mindless staring, the girl used her sword to prop herself up into a standing position. Then she raised one knuckle and hit Gaius in the head.

"Ow! What was that for?"

Retracting her knuckle, Anna wiped her mouth.

"First things first. Look where we are. Where do you think this is? And who's fault was it that got us here in the first place?"

For someone who seemed exhausted on the outside, her demeanor didn't change one bit. Gaius rubbed his head and muttered a sorry under his breath. Anna pretended she didn't hear this, and folded her arms.

"Well. We can talk about this later. Are you going to introduce yourself anytime soon?"

"Huh? Oh..." Gaius forgot the girl was a complete stranger to him. Well, maybe not so much as a complete stranger anymore. He lent out his hand, expecting a handshake of sorts.

"The name's Gaius. As for my occupation...erm..."

"You're a thief, right? Pleasure to meet you. The name's Anna...but you probably already knew that."

The girl shook his hand, gripping it teasingly. Gaius winced.

"Um, yeah. I've been acquainted with one of your sisters. You sure do look alike."

"It runs in the family. We all look the same, but we're all different people."

"Your family reunions should be pretty hectic."

"We get that a lot."

Gaius had hoped a little conversation might get the gatekeeper's mind off of the current situation, but that wasn't likely. She had an extremely sharp mind, as expected from a renowned traveling merchant.

"All right, Gaius. What do you plan on doing now? We're stranded in one of the Outrealms, and we don't have a definite way back."

"Well, are there any other methods we can use to get back to our world?"

"Hmm... There should be an old man who roams the outrealms. He should know a thing or two about how to get back to the real world. He's a fortune teller, about so tall, kind of eccentric."

"An old man? If he roams around, how are we supposed to find him?"

"The Outrealms are a strange place. We'll meet him sooner or later. I hope."

The remark tacked on the back of that sentence didn't make Gaius feel any more comfort. But this was his only lead, and he didn't know too much about the outrealms either. Anna gave him a 'trust me' look, with her trademark pose. Feeling thirsty, Gaius suggested they find a water source first. The merchant girl didn't seem to mind.

Gaius pinpointed a potential water spot and started to dash towards it. He skillfully navigated through the mass of thin trees. With light steps and fast reflexes as a thief, maneuvering rough terrain was not a problem. Anna herself had no trouble following him. She didn't move as quick as Gaius did, but her style was more elegant.

The sound of rushing water became more evident. As they reached a fairly large river, they stopped. Anna found a sturdy log and rested herself on it. Gaius went closer to the river, then sloshed the water onto his face, wetting his shirt in the process.

"Aw man." He whined as he took out several pieces of soggy candy and disposed of them.

"Hey, can I have some candy?" Anna asked.

Gaius found another piece of wet candy on his personnel and tossed it to Anna, who barely caught it. She grumbled, opened the wrapper, and ate the candy.

"Could you be any more inconsiderate?" she said with the candy in her mouth.

Gaius ignored the question and brushed his upper body. After disdainfully picking out the bad pieces of candy, he turned to Anna. The merchant was sitting quite comfortably, with one leg on the other. Her red eyes were focused on the sky behind Gaius. Looking behind, he could see smoke from atop the trees. A forest fire?

"...I have a bad feeling." Anna murmured.

"Come on. Let's check it out." Gaius took initiative and ran towards the source.

"Hey! Wait up." The girl got on her foot and trailed behind him.

Getting closer to the source of the smoke, the air increased in temperature. Covering his mouth and nose, Gaius slowed down his pace. In front of him was a small village, which seemed to have been the source of the smoke. Near the gate was a collapsed old man clad in white garb.

Finally catching up, Anna's worried expression turned into a state of horror. She knelt down beside the old man and held his shoulder.

"Old Hubba! Are you okay? Can you hear me?" she said in a worrisome tone.

"A..Anna? Is that you...?" the old man answered weakly.

"Tell me what happened!"

"P...purple...monsters...powerful...mmgh..."

The old man lost his consciousness.

Putting his attention towards the village, Gaius could hear strange growling noises coming from inside. They were unlike any wild animal he'd encountered.

"Red, stay here with the old dude. I'm going to check what's in there."

"What? That's dangerous!"

"Don't worry. Danger is my middle name."

With a two-finger salute, Gaius went through the gates before Anna could do anything else. Moving further in, the growling noises were getting louder. The heat was hotter than Gaius expected, as he felt a chocolate bar melting in his back pocket. Trying to ignore it, Gaius went down the empty road. Hearing more voices, he decided to go into a nearby alley, expecting it to be a safe spot. But what he saw there didn't agree with that.

A purple humanoid warrior with glowing red eyes and a hollow expression stood before him, wielding a fairly huge axe. It emitted eerie purplish black smoke. Seeing the thief, it growled incoherently, and charged straight at him.

* * *

**Author's note: **

**So I decided to start off with a bit of action. I also changed it into Adventure/Romance because I...can't really do humor.  
**

**If there were any mistakes, or if you'd like to point out something, please do. Constructive criticism please! **

**Where's the actual romance, you ask? Be patient.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem. **


End file.
